Battle of Chahezhen

The Battle of Chahezhen was fought in winter 191 between the armies of Cao Cao and the Han general Huang Wan. Cao Cao destroyed a Han army which threatened to attack the unoccupied town of Chen, the capital of Chen Commandery, before proceeding to march north.

Background
In winter 191, the Han minister Wang Yun, fearing the tyranny of Dong Zhuo, sent his adopted daughter Diao Chan to the capital. His plan was to have her destroy the relationship between Dong Zhuo and his adopted son, Lu Bu.

Cao Cao capitalized off of the cracks in Dong Zhuo's regime to further expand his gains, hoping to march northwest from Yangzhou, through his portion of Chen Commandery, and conquer the Chen farmland to the northwest of Chen town, completing his conquest of the commandery and bringing him closer to the capital of Chang'an, where he could destroy Dong Zhuo himself. However, new threats presented themselves along the way: his father Cao Song was ambushed and murdered by the vile Tao Qian, so Cao Cao declared war on Tao Qian. Meanwhile, a Han army under Huang Wan advanced north from Yangzhou city and threatened the town of Chen during Cao Cao's absence. Cao Cao decided to bring them to battle rather than leave his territory undefended.

Battle
In the ensuing battle, Cao Cao's numerically-superior army attacked Huang Wan's army from multiple sides, while Cao Cao himself charged the cowardly Huang Wan, who refused to duel him. Cao Cao killed a fleeing Huang Wan, whose soldiers were cordoned and slaughtered. Cao Cao inflicted 448 losses on Huang Wan's army of 631 men, capturing and recruiting 51 prisoners. The remnants of Huang Wan's army were forced to retreat into Han territory, allowing for Cao Cao to resume his northward advance.